News

Houses ‘would change nature of village’

By Jon Nurse
June 08, 2012

Plans to change a village eyesore to 126 houses have been refused on grounds that the scheme is too intensive for the area.

The University of Reading had made an outline application for land at the Manor by Church Lane in Shinfield to be used for houses, plus sports pitches and allotments.

Wokingham Borough Council’s planning committee rejected the plans last week at a meeting at the civic offices in Shute End amid concerns the volume of homes proposed was too dense for the site.

Committee vice chairman Cllr Chris Bowring said: “I’m concerned with the figure. It seems inequitable to me that they should have 26 more houses than the rules say.

“There are other modest development locations in the borough. Shinfield is a modest development location because it is a village, and allowing this would be changing the nature of the village.”

Mark Cupit, head of development management at the council, said: “Twenty-eight developments per hectare is actually on the lowish side.

“I think there is plenty of space in this plan, with allotments and sports pitches to come at a later stage.

“It’s eminently logical for it to be used in this way – whether it’s 100 or 126 is entirely academic given the history behind it.”

Committee member Cllr Tim Holton said: “If ever a brownfield site needed developing this is it, but I feel 126 houses is too much for the site.

“It needs more than the one access point proposed and it’s too far from a bus stop.”

The application has been in motion since January 2011 and the outline layout was presented to the committee last week following a resolution that the site would contain 40 per cent affordable housing.

Local resident Richard Davy-Smith said: “This site is a dangerous mess. I know people don’t like to walk through even during the day.

“It would be a disaster to build everywhere else and then not here.”

The plans were refused in the vote by a majority of five to four.

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Most recent user comments 7 of 7

A very poor and misinformed decision by Wokingham Borough Council. This site is an eyesore and the developer proposed a low density (28 houses per hectare) development with a huge amount of public open space and allotments to go with it which local people could enjoy. I expect the developer will now appeal the refusal and win and be awarded costs against the council (ultimately paid for by council tax payers). Therefore all this decision has done is caused a delay in cleaning up this eyesore, providing much needed houses and cost local people money. Cllr Tim Holton's comment about the access being unacceptable is amusing bearing in mind the council's own highway officer confirmed that there was nothing wrong with the access. Perhaps Cllr Holton is an expert on highway matters. If he is, no doubt he will want to give his expert opinion at the planning enquiry when the developer appeals and calls the council's own highway officer as a witness who supported the planning application! What a shambles

stix of reading
08/06/2012 at 16:43

CORRECTION

This is a council that approves building on valuable green field sites surrounding the borough but rejects building on brown field sites. There is something very wrong here.

PoneRana, Wokingham
08/06/2012 at 14:10

This is a council that approves building on valuable green field sites surrounding the borough but rejects building on green field sites. There is something very wrong here.

PoneRana, Wokingham
08/06/2012 at 11:14

Damiano_Tommassi - I know, I was devastated about that (I've only moved to the area in the past year, and didn't realise they were going to do this).

That is a prime piece of land at walking distance from the town centre, which could be used so much more functionally than yet more housing. Even if it wasn't to be left as green space, I'd still prefer if it were used as expansion space for the leisure facilities. Soon we'll be a town packed full of housing with nothing for anyone to do, no centre or recreational space.

alex_f, Wokingham
08/06/2012 at 11:04

Well done, WBC Planning Committee! It's about time they fought back against these greedy, crowded developments.

Fluffball, Berkshire
08/06/2012 at 10:18

Spookley close to where one of the Cllrs live...

https://www.facebook.com/pages/No-to-2500-new-homes-in-South-Wokingham/182686681791322

Have a look at the Strategic Development Locations in blue.